Mail box indicator flag



June 13, 1961 c. A. MIODUSKI MAIL BOX INDICATOR FLAG Filed July 17, 1959 Ewg-3 I IN V EN TOR,

(A/557618 ,4) M/OOU-SK/ United States Patent 2,988,268 MAIL BOX INDICATOR FLAG Chester A. Mioduski, 226 N. Torino Ave., Tucson, Ariz. Filed July 17, 1959, Ser. No. 827,797 2 Claims. Cl. 232-45 The present invention relates to rural mail boxes generally and more particularly to an indicator flag for incorporation in a mail box for indicating when mail has been picked up from the mail box or delivered to the mail box.

Previously proposed and presently in use are rural mail boxes having signal means for indicating when mail has been delivered thereto or mail has been picked up therefrom. Generally, such devices depend upon the opening of the door of the mail box for actuation. Such devices as have been proposed are not fully satisfactory for the reason that most of them are complicated to the extreme, fail to signal when mail has been picked up from the associated box or fail to indicate when mail has been delivered to the box in such a manner as to be clearly understandable to the householder and user of the mail box. Additionally, some of the devices purposed or in use require the attention of the person delivering themail for actuation thereof. Negligence or carelessness on the part of the person delivering the mail frequently results in the spurious signal which gives rise to considerable annoyance to the householder.

An object of the present invention is to provide an indicator flag for a rural mail box which may be employed to signal the person delivering the mail that there is mail to be picked up and, after the mail has been picked up, the indicator flag indicates to the householder that the mail has been picked up.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an indicator flag for a rural mail box which has means for indicating to the person delivering the mail that there is no mail to be picked up, which indicator flag is operable to indicate whether or not the person delivering the mail has opened the box for delivery of mail into the box.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a rural mail box indicator flag which is simply constructed, one sturdily constructed, one attached to a mail box with ease and facility, one which is highly effective in action, one which is economically feasible.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be fully apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the annexed drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an isometric view of the mail box according to the present invention with the indicator flag in position to indicate that there is mail in the box to be picked up, a portion of the door being shown broken away,

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view on the line 2-2 of FIGURE 1,

FIGURE 3 is a side elevational view showing the indicator flag in position to indicate to the person picking up the mail that there is no mail to be picked up, and

FIGURE 4 is an elevational view showing the indicator flag indicating to the householder that the box has been opened for either picking up mail or delivering mail thereto, the dotted line showing indicating the door in partially open position and also showing the path of movement of the indicator flag as the door is opened.

Referring in greater detail to the drawing in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, the mail box of the present invention comprises a casing having one end 12 closed and the other end 14 opened. A door 16, hinged at the bottom, normally closes the opened end 14 of the casing 10. i i

2,988,268 Patented June 13, 1961 The door 16 has a flange 18 projecting from its perimeter overlying the adjacent end portion of the open end 14 of the casing 10. Tabs 20 project from the flange 18 on each side of the mail box or casing 10 and are connected by loose rivets 22 to the sides of the mail box or casing 10 for swinging movement of the door 16 from the full line position in FIGURE 4 closing the open end of the casing 10 to open position as shown in dotted lines.

A horizontally disposed latching element embodying a pin 24 is carried on the outer face of the door 16 and projects across the side edge of the mail box or casing 10. One end of the pin is flattened as at 26 and is secured by other rivets 28 to the door 16.

An indicator flag is positioned in a vertical direction exteriorly of and adjacent the side edge of the casing 10 over which the pin 24 projects. The indicator flag is connected by its long leg 32 to the casing 10 for movement about a horizontal axis from the vertical direction position to a horizontal position or to a lowered direction position. A loose rivet 30 extends through the side wall of the casing 10 and through the long leg 32 of the indicator flag inwardly of and spaced from one end of the long leg 32. The indicator flag is designated generally by the reference numeral 34.

A bar member 36 projects perpendicularly from the indicator flag long leg 32 at a point contiguous to the rivet 30. Means embodying notches 38 and 40 on the long leg 32' and the bar member 36, respectively, on the other end of the long leg 32 and the free end of the bar member 36, receivingly embrace the projecting end part of the pin 24 for holding the indicator flag 34 in the vertical direction position, as shown in FIGURE 1, or in the horizontal position as shown in FIGURE 3.

The indicator flag 3 4 is operable under the force of gravity to shift from the vertical position or the horizontal position to the lowered directed position when the door 16 is moved to open position. The short leg 42 of the indicator flag 34 carries on its free end an outwardly turned flange 44 which may have one or both of its sides colored with a distinctive coating of paint or other material so as to constitute a signal visible from a distance. Because of the offset relation of the flange 44 relative to the rivet 30 which supports the indicator flag 34 on the mail box or casing 10, upon opening of the door 16 the indicator flag 34 will execute swinging movement in the clockwise direction responsive to the action of gravity from the position in which it has been set to the position shown in FIGURE 4 in which the short leg 42 is lowered below the casing 10 and one face of the flange 44 faces to the rear of the casing 10 and is visible from the household employing the casing 10.

A conventional latch assembly 46 secures the door 16 in the closed position and a floor 48 and post 50' connected to the floor 48 support the casing 10 above a ground surface in the conventional manner.

In use, when there is mail to be picked up by the person charged with delivery and collection of the mail, the indicator flag 34 is swung to the position shown in FIGURE 1 which indicates to such person that there is mail to be collected. Upon opening of the door 16, the indicator flag 34 will swing from the upstanding position to the position shown in FEGURE 4 under the action of gravity.

Alternatively, if there is no mail to be picked up the householder may position the indicator flag 34 as in FIGURE 3 and if there is mail to be delivered upon opening of the door 16 the indicator flag 34 will again swing to the position shown in FIGURE 4.

What is claimed is:

1. A mail box comprising a casing closed at one end and open at the other end, a door normally closing the open end of said casing and connected to said casing for swinging movement from the closed position to an open position, a horizontally disposed latching element on the outer face of said door and projecting across a side edge of said casing, an indicator flag positioned in a vertical direction exteriorly of and adjacent said side edge of said casing, said flag having a long leg and a short leg projecting from one end thereof, said long leg being connected intermediate its ends to said casing for movement about a horizontal axis from the vertical position to a horizontal position or a lowered position below said casing, a bar member projecting perpendicularly from said indicator flag long leg intermediate said short leg and the other end of said long leg, said bar member having a free end, means on the other end of said indicator flag long leg releasably and embracingly receiving said latching element when the door is in the closed position to hold said indicator flag in the horizontal direction position, and means on the free end of said bar member embracingly receiving said latch element when the door is in the closed position to hold said indicator flag in the vertical 20 position.

2. A mail box comprising a casing closed at one end and open at the other end, a door normally closing the open end of said casing and connected to said casing for swinging movement from the closed position to an open 25 position, a horizontally disposed latching element embodying a pin on the outer face of said door and projecting across a side edge of said casing, an indicator flag positioned in a vertical direction exteriorly of and adjacent said side edge of said casing, said flag having a long leg and a short leg projecting from one end thereof, said long leg being connected intermediate its ends to said casing for movement about a horizontal axis from the vertical position to a horizontal position or a lowered position below said casing, a bar member projecting perpendicularly from said indicator flag long leg intermediate said short leg and the other end of said indicator flag long leg, said bar member having a free end, means embodying a notch on the other end of said indicator flag long leg releasably and embracingly receiving said pin when the door is in the closed position to hold said indicator flag in the horizontal direction position, and means embodying a notch on the free end of said bar member embracingly receiving said pin when the door is in the closed position to hold said indicator flag in the vertical position, said indicator flag being operable to shift from the vertical direction position to the lowered position responsive to the force of gravity and movement of said door to the open position and release of said pin with said indicator flag long leg notch.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,352,975 Roe July 4, 1944 2,670,897 Gagnon Mar. 2, 1954 2,684,197 Babcock July 20, 1954 

